Stadium naming rights in Kansas City

[MrCoffee]

Sporting Kansas City’s new stadium finally has a name – and it’s definitely unique.
The Major League Soccer club announced today that it has teamed with Livestrong – champion cyclist and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong’s nonprofit foundation – to christen its $200 million complex Livestrong Sporting Park.
According to team CEO Robb Heineman, the agreement – which is for six years – is rare in the sense that Livestrong did not pay for the naming rights. Instead, a portion of all stadium revenues – including ticket sales and concessions – will fund a nonprofit effort to fight cancer.
The goal, Heineman says, is to raise $7.5 million for Livestrong over the course of the agreement.

http://www.kansascity.com/2011/03/08/2707798/sporting-kc-teams-with-armstrong.html

Regardless of your position on Lance Armstrong/Livestrong, this is such a nice change from the standard Visa-Bank of America-McDonalds-Jiffy Lube-Doritos Stadium that I just don't care that they're mostly doing it for non-MLS revenue.

In your face, Barcelona! In your face!

[Blue_Tires]

1. I thought they were going to name it after Lamar Hunt?

[Upton]

2. Speaking of Barca..

considering RVP was sent off because he couldn't hear the whistle over the roar of 95,000 fans, I wonder why Abidal was allowed to get away with this?

[MrCoffee]

3. Abidal should have been sent off for that, and there's no way RvP didn't hear the whistle

Whether he heard it or not is sort of beside the point when it took barely a second between the whistle and the shot, then getting booked for time wasting with 30 minutes to go? Ridiculous.

I was bummed that he got sent off, because now that's the story, rather than Barca handing Arsenal a beat down, which they did.

[Upton]

4. A beat down?

Barca may have had the vast majority of possession and chances, but when RVP was unjustly sent off, Arsenal was leading on aggregate.

Being an Arsenal supporter, I've seen plenty of games in which it was the Gunners dominating possession but it was the other side that got the needed result...

Keep in mind also, that 2 out of the last 3 times Arsenal have faced Barca, they've dominated the second half..particularly the final 30 minutes. Van Persie's sending off in the 56th minute conveniently deprived them of a chance to duplicate those 2 performances and move on.

RVP's sending off SHOULD be the story.

[HuckleB]

5. Only because of an own goal and a missed call against Messi in the box in the first half.

Arsenal was going down regardless. The send off is only a story because the English soccer press is so bloody focused on the EPL. It's ridiculous. A non story.

[Upton]

10. "Arsenal was going down regardless"

possibly, possibly not. They were leading and didn't even need to score again. And even if Barca had scored once, it would only have been 3-3 on aggregate.

I don't accept the premise that Barca would have scored twice, kept Arsenal off the board, and won anyway, had they stayed 11 on 11..

And an OG counts just as much as any beautiful strike..

And the EPL is the top league in the world..

[HuckleB]

11. You don't have to accept that premise.

I do. Arsenal was playing horribly, and they were clearly not going to score. Barca was clearly going to score, and probably repeatedly.

EPL is boring. It has money, but not much of a product. The only truly entertaining team in the EPL right now is Tottenham.

[MrCoffee]

13. Sir Ian of Holloway takes umbrage with that

Blackpool are the most entertaining team on the planet right now.

[Upton]

15. A Spurs fan...,lol

now the Arsenal hating all makes sense..

Btw, when is the last time Tottenham won the league..'61 or was it '62?

[HuckleB]

16. Nope.

I'm neither a Spurs fan, nor an Arsenal hater.

Just noting reality at this point in time. Try again.

[MrCoffee]

8. Thanks to Busquets, Arsenal actually got one shot on goal

Oh, wait...

I guess it made up for Cesc's assist on Messi's 1st goal. You're not wearing the Blaugrana yet, Cesc!

RvP's dismissal is convenient for Arsenal fans, nothing more. If Nicklas Bendtner wasn't, you know, Nicklas Bendtner, maybe the result is different.

But hey, credit where it's due, Almunia had a fantastic game. He was unlucky on the second and no shame in losing that penalty shot.

As Pep said..."Arsenal are a very good team. They didn't make three passes in a row."

[HuckleB]

6. It's likely that he had pushed the refs buttons more than once already.

He knows why he was sent off, but he's not going to admit it, so we will never know.

No one but the British press and US EPL fans gives a crap.

[HuckleB]

7. Looks like yet another suburban wasteland facility.

The naming deal is good, but it makes me wonder.

[MrCoffee]

9. Wonder what? That they're gonna ask Lance to make some calls, put in a good word...

and fill that bad boy up with marquee concert acts in the off season? They wouldn't do such a thing, would they?

[HuckleB]

12. I wonder what made them go this route.

Or are you saying the owners in Kansas City are great humanitarians, and that they wouldn't have preferred to sell the name?

:shrug:

[MrCoffee]

14. I think there's a flip side...off season stadium use

Armstrong has tons of connections...I'd imagine he'll be happy to use them to help fill a stadium where his organization gets a cut of the gate.

[HuckleB]

17. That's possible.

You'll have to let us know.

:hi: